TMC drops Saket Gokhale and 2 others from Rajya Sabha, names 4 new candidates for elections, BJP slams the party for inclusion of non-Bengalis

Ahead of the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections, the ruling All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) in West Bengal announced the names of four candidates on Friday (27th February). The names include the state Cabinet Minister Babul Supriyo, former West Bengal DGP Rajeev Kumar, Senior Advocate Menaka Guruswamy and actor Koel Mallick.

“We are pleased to announce the candidature of Babul Supriyo, Rajeev Kumar (Former DGP, West Bengal), Menaka Guruswamy and Koel Mallick for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections. We extend our heartfelt congratulations and best wishes to them. May they continue to uphold Trinamool’s enduring legacy of resilience and its unwavering commitment to safeguarding the rights and dignity of every Indian,” the TMC wrote on X on Friday.

Babul Supriyo joined the TMC in 2021 after leaving the BJP and is presently serving as the Minister of Information Technology and Electronics in the West Bengal government. Rajiv Kumar has served as the Director General of Police and Commissioner of Kolkata Police. Senior Advocate Menaka Guruswamy has recently represented the TMC in an Enforcement Directorate case. If she wins the election, Guruswamy will be the country’s first openly LGBTQ+/lesbian MP. Lastly, Koel Mallick is a popular Bengali actress.

Notably, the nomination of four candidates by TMC means that they are not re-electing their three existing MPs to the Rajya Sabha. They are Saket Gokhale, Subrata Bakshi and Ritabrata Banerjee. Saket Gokhale had become a headache for the party as he continued to spread fake news on social media even after becoming an MP. Last year Delhi High Court ordered him to pay ₹50 lakh to former diplomat Lakshmi Puri in a defamation case for making false claims against her.

Subrata Bakshi reportedly opted out of returning to the Rajya Sabha over health issues. Ritabrata Banerjee will likely contest the assembly elections. The fourth vacant seat belonged to Mausam Noor, who resigned from the parliament last month after leaving TMC and joining Congress.

TMC MLA Asit Mazumdar expressed great zeal over the announcement of the names of the four TMC candidates. Speaking to the media, he said that the names are just a trailer and the full picture is yet to come. “This is just the trailer — the full picture is still to come. This is Mamata Banerjee’s trailer; the real picture is yet to unfold. What happens next will be seen by the people of Bengal and the people of India,” Mazumdar said.

The Election Commission has announced elections for 37 Rajya Sabha seats across various states, including West Bengal. The elections are scheduled for 16th March.

Following the release of the names of the TMC Rajya Sabha candidates, the BJP slammed the party for including non-Bengali names in its candidate list. Based on this, the state BJP questioned Mamata Banerjee’s pro-Bengali stance. Couldn’t Mamata Banerjee find enough Bengalis to nominate? Or is she rewarding those who hold her dirty secrets and are willing accomplices in her crime and corruption syndicate?” the state BJP said in a statement.

Written by OpIndia Staff
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